Army Chief Gen Bipin Rawat has said, the Indian Army is facing a dirty war in Jammu and Kashmir which has to be fought through innovative ways.

He stoutly defended the use of a Kashmiri as a human shield by a young officer. In an interaction with PTI, Mr. Rawat said, though a Court of Inquiry was finalising its probe into the incident, the main objective of awarding the officer, Major Leetul Gogoi was to boost the morale of young officers of the force.

Talking about the complexity of the security challenge in the state, he suggested it would have been easier for the armed forces if the protesters were firing weapons instead of throwing stones.

When asked about the solution to the Kashmir issue, Army chief Rawat said, it will have to be a composite solution and everybody will have to get involved. He also emphasised on the need for taking harsh measures to stop infiltration and counter-terrorism.